Another cleaning crew ?, how about this list?

[mane3215]

Ok, I have a 7g bow, 12#'s lr, and 10#'s ls. I cannot get any kin dof definitive answers on anything as to how much and of what to get so here is something I threw together. Is it too much? Maybe too little?

 

1 mexican turbo

1 margarita snail

3 nassarius snails

3 asterea snails

2 bumble bee snails (looks)

1 scarlet reef hermit

1 blue leg hermit

1 porcelin crab (may replace with emerald, but I like the porcelin better)

1 blood shrimp

 

 

IS this too much stuff? Should I cut the snails back? It was suggested to get just 5-10 astereas, and 5-10 nassarius, but I wanted to mix it up a bit.

 

 

Thanks.

[Deimos]

I tend to "oversnail" my tank..but thats because hermits are the devil and I don't use them. The Porcelain crab isn't a cleanup critter..its a "looks" critter..its a filter/comb feeder that isn't going to do a darn thing about algae or detritus really. Good shrimp choice...bloods are facultative cleaner species so that'll help. I'd ditch the hermits though..they CAN be more of a problem than a solution.

[seabass]

I see people’s cleanup crews and always think they are a little large. I fear that my critters might starve if I overstock a cleanup crew. I’d get one of each type of snail that you want, and see how they do before you add more. My two purchased snails to a good job; however, I admit, I must have more than 6 Stomatella snails that got introduced with my LR and corals.

 

I like my Scarlet and Blue Leg hermits. I got them more for entertainment than anything else, but they do their cleanup work too. However, you’ll find lots of people that don’t care for them (I don't care for Zebra hermits myself). Two should be easy enough to keep track of, plus, they are like a buck apiece.

 

Porcelin crabs are cool and their size makes them perfect for a nano. If I were getting Porcelins, I’d probably get two. However, if you do, you might want to rethink the hermits (hermits might be too aggressive). Also, I wouldn’t keep an anemone for them. Instead, I’d wait to buy them after I’ve introduced a substitute coral for them to hang out in. You’ll have to make sure you feed them something like Marine Snow.

 

I keep a Blood shrimp in my 7-gallon and it’s one of the cooler things in my tank. Although it looks pretty big in a small nano (as would most shrimp), I’d have to recommend it to anyone wanting to keep a shrimp.

 

Good job, I like your choices.

[mane3215]

Cool, thanks for the info. Then I will go with one of each of the above mentioned snails, no hermits, two porcelin crabs, and a blood shrimp.

 

I will wait to get the crabs, until I introduce a coral. What coral is good for them to loaf in?

[seabass]

I don’t know what coral would be best, maybe a Heliofungia? ??? It would have to be hardy enough that it wouldn’t be bothered by the crabs. I’d do a search, then try posting this question in the Invertebrate and Coral Forums.

[seabass]

I didn’t want to mislead you, so I just spoke to my dealer about Porcelin crabs. She said it would do much better with an anemone (I guess they eat their mucus or something). She had one on a carpet anemone that was really cool. There are differing opinions on if you should keep anemones in a nano or not, so I’d do some more research.

[mane3215]

Yeah thanks, I will do more research. I have also read that anemones are the greatest for a nano. I have to figure something out =).

[fishbabies]

Deimos...what kind of problems do you find with hermits?

[seabass]

Here are some of the arguments that I’ve heard against hermits. They will sometimes kill snails for their shells even when you give them suitable snail shells to move into (sometimes the snail that they kill doesn’t even have a shell that would fit). They drag their shells around and otherwise disrupt the aquascaping. Sometimes they even kill other hermits. These problems seem to get worst as the hermits get bigger.

 

Out of the hermits I like the Scarlet and blue legs the best. They stay fairly small, are fun to watch, and are good scavengers (plus, I don’t think they get as mean as Zebra hermits). I only got one of each because they climb all over everything. Do a search on hermits and you’ll find all kinds of opinions.

[mane3215]

Well I was going to order my critters this evening, but instead placed an order at ipsf for a 9 for 99.99 pacakge, and a coupe of other goodies. I know they are going to send a bunch of small snails, so I dont want to overload my tank. I want to see what I have first then add my real critters afterwards. Though I may shoot to the store and pick a couple up to get a start ont his algae.

[Deimos]

Hermits tend to be a pain in the ass because they like to eat snails. Thats basically it...that and they can nip at polyps but thats rare. I just don't like them..I find that a larger quantity of snails does an adequate job of keeping algae down (not that a tank with good water/protein skimming produces a TON of algae anyway). Just a comment on anemones in nanos. I think its all relative to experience and species. Obviously..no one new to reefing should be keeping an anemone..or any of the more delicate corals for that matter...but there are some anemones that do fine in nanos...particularly BTA's (Bubble-tip Anemones..Entacmaea quadricolor). Myself and quite a few other maintain them in their nanos and they don't seem to cause too many problems provided they are cared for properly. Just a thought for when you get more experience....

[T?@7]

I couldnt imagine a reef without herms.....

[Deimos]

There are plenty without hermits......evil spawns of satan....